Yield 6 servings (serving size: 3 ounces beef, 3/4 cup potatoes, and 1/3 cup sauce)
Ingredients Steak: 1 1/2 pounds boneless chuck steak, trimmed 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons olive oil 1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion 1/2 cup chopped carrot 1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided 1 teaspoon dark brown sugar 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary 1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms 1 garlic clove, minced 2 bay leaves 1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness Stout Potatoes: 2 pounds peeled baking potatoes, quartered 2 tablespoons butter 1/2 cup fat-free milk 1/4 cup finely chopped green onions 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preparation To prepare steak, sprinkle steak with 1/2 teaspoon pepper and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add steak; cook 5 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove steak from pan; set aside. Add 1 1/2 cups onion, chopped carrot, 2 tablespoons broth, and sugar. Cover, reduce heat to medium, and cook 10 minutes. Stir in rosemary, mushrooms, and garlic. Cover and cook 2 minutes. Add bay leaves, stout, remaining broth, and steak; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour and 30 minutes or until steak is tender.
To prepare potatoes, place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil; simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain. Return potatoes to pan. Add butter; beat with a mixer at medium speed just until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients. Keep warm.
Remove steak from pan; keep warm. Discard bay leaves. Increase heat to medium-high; cook 5 minutes or until slightly thickened. Spoon stout mixture over steak. Serve with potatoes.
Nutritional Information Calories:428 (27% from fat) Fat:13.1g (sat 5g,mono 6g,poly 0.9g) Protein:35.2g Carbohydrate:42.3g Fiber:4.6g Cholesterol:86mg Iron:4.3mg Sodium:872mg Calcium:82mg
Basic biscuit dough is enriched with sugar, egg, fruit, and nuts to make a sweet breakfast scone that's equally tasty served warm or at room temperature. A sprinkling of coarse turbinado sugar creates a crunchy topping.
Yield 12 servings (serving size: 1 scone)
Ingredients 9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups) 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 5 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces 1/3 cup fat-free buttermilk 1/4 cup granulated sugar 3 tablespoons honey 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind 1 large egg, lightly beaten 1/3 cup sweetened dried cranberries 1/4 cup chopped pistachios, toasted 1 large egg white 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
Preparation 1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Cover and chill flour mixture 10 minutes.
3. Combine buttermilk and next 4 ingredients (through egg), stirring with a whisk until well blended. Stir in cranberries and nuts. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture; stir just until dough is moist.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Pat dough into an 8-inch circle on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cut dough into 12 wedges (do not separate the wedges). Brush egg white over dough; sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar. Bake at 400° for 13 minutes or until golden. Remove from pan; cool 2 minutes on wire racks. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutritional Information Calories:191 (30% from fat) Fat:6.4g (sat 3.3g,mono 2g,poly 0.6g) Protein:3.9g Carbohydrate:29.9g Fiber:1g Cholesterol:30mg Iron:1.3mg Sodium:184mg Calcium:66mg
Notes: If making sticky pudding up to 2 days ahead, tip sauced pudding from pan onto a microwave-safe serving plate, cover with a large inverted bowl, and chill. To serve, uncover and heat in a microwave oven on full power (100%) for about 5 minutes.
Yield Makes 10 servings
Ingredients 3/4 pound pitted dates About 1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) butter or margarine About 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar 3 large eggs Sticky sauce (recipe follows) Crème fraîche or sour cream
Preparation 1. In a 3- to 4-quart pan, combine dates and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat and stir often until most of the liquid is absorbed, 5 to 7 minutes; watch carefully as liquid reduces to avoid scorching. Let cool at least 15 minutes.
2. Butter and flour a 9-inch square pan. In a bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups flour with baking powder and baking soda.
3. In a food processor, whirl cooked dates until smooth. Add 1/2 cup butter, sugar, eggs, and flour mixture; whirl until well blended. Scrape batter into pan and spread level.
4. Bake in a 325° oven until cake springs back when lightly pressed in the center and edges begin to pull from pan sides, 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool in pan at least 5 minutes. Invert onto a rack. Cut warm or cool cake in half horizontally.
5. Rinse and dry baking pan. Pour about 1/2 cup hot sticky sauce into pan. Lay cake bottom, cut side up, in pan. Pour about 2 cups hot sticky sauce evenly over cake. Lay cake top, cut side down, in pan. Pour remaining hot sticky sauce evenly over it. Let stand at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. Invert a flat, rimmed plate over pan; holding containers together, turn over, and lift pan off cake. Cut into rectangles and transfer with a spatula to plates. Add crème fraîche to taste.
Sticky sauce. In a 5- to 6-quart pan over high heat, boil 1 1/2 cups whipping cream, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 1/4 cup (1/8 lb.) butter or margarine, and 1/4 cup light corn syrup, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately stir another 1 1/2 cups whipping cream into pan. Return to high heat and stir until sauce comes to a rolling boil, 1 to 2 minutes. Use hot, or let cool, cover, and chill up to 2 days; stir over high heat until hot. Makes 3 1/2 cups.
Nutritional Information Calories:717 (48% from fat) Protein:6.2g Fat:38g (sat 23) Carbohydrate:94g Fiber:2.2g Sodium:338mg Cholesterol:181mg
Ingredients 12 ounces linguiça (Portuguese) or Polish sausage, sliced 1/4 inch thick 1 onion (6 oz.), peeled and chopped 1 large clove garlic, peeled and minced 5 cups fat-skimmed chicken broth 1 bottle (12 oz.) wheat beer (hefeweizen; see notes) 1 pound thin-skinned potatoes (1 1/2 in. wide), scrubbed and quartered 1 1/2 quarts finely shredded cabbage (8 to 12 oz.; see notes) 1 cup sliced carrots (1/4 in. thick; see notes) 1 teaspoon coriander seeds 1/2 teaspoon whole allspice 1/2 teaspoon peppercorns 2 tablespoons chopped parsley Whole-grain mustard
Preparation 1. In a 5- to 6-quart pan over medium-high heat, stir sausage often until lightly browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Spoon out and discard all but 1 tablespoon fat from pan.
2. Add onion and garlic to pan; stir often until limp, 3 minutes.
3. Increase heat to high. Add broth, beer, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, coriander, allspice, and peppercorns (wrap and tie spices in cheesecloth if desired). Cover and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender to bite, 10 to 15 minutes. Discard spices if wrapped.
4. Stir in parsley. Ladle soup into bowls. Serve mustard alongside to add to taste.
Nutritional Information Calories:301 (48% from fat) Protein:17g Fat:16g (sat 5.6) Carbohydrate:23g Fiber:3.4g Sodium:697mg Cholesterol:38mg
Notes: Don't substitute a dark ale or stout for the light beer here; it can be too bitter. For quick preparation, buy a package of shredded cabbage and sliced carrots. Chop the onion and garlic while the sausage browns.
Preparation 1. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions in a 13- x 9-inch pan. Prick tops of warm brownies at 1-inch intervals with a wooden pick, and brush with coffee liqueur, if desired. Crumble into small pieces.
2. Prepare pudding mix according to package directions, omitting chilling.
3. Place half of crumbled brownies in bottom of a 3-quart trifle bowl; top with half each of pudding, candy bars, and whipped topping. Repeat layers. Cover and chill at least 8 hours.
Note: For testing purposes only, we used Kahlúa for coffee liqueur.
The cranberries and pastry cream can be made up to three days ahead. Then, simply assemble and refrigerate the trifle up to 24 hours before you plan to serve it.
Yield 12 servings (serving size: about 3/4 cup)
Ingredients Cranberries: 3/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup fresh orange juice 1/4 cup Grand Marnier (or other orange liqueur) 1 (12-ounce) package fresh cranberries Pastry cream: 1/2 cup sugar 5 tablespoons cornstarch 2 1/2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/8 teaspoon salt Remaining ingredients: 1 (10.75-ounce) loaf pound cake (such as Sara Lee), cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1 teaspoon orange rind
Preparation To prepare cranberries, combine 3/4 cup sugar, orange juice, and Grand Marnier in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat; cook 3 minutes until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Add cranberries to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 8 minutes or until cranberries pop. Spoon mixture into a bowl; cover and chill.
To prepare pastry cream, combine 1/2 cup sugar and cornstarch in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add milk to pan, stirring with a whisk until blended; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Gradually add half of hot milk mixture to eggs, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return milk mixture to pan; cook over medium heat 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and salt. Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl until custard cools to room temperature (about 25 minutes), stirring occasionally.
Arrange half of cake cubes in the bottom of a 2-quart trifle dish. Spoon 1 1/2 cups cranberry mixture over cake; top with 1 1/2 cups pastry cream. Repeat layers. Garnish with rind. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and chill at least 4 hours.
Nutritional Information Calories:265 (21% from fat) Fat:6.2g (sat 3.2g,mono 1.9g,poly 0.4g) Protein:4.6g Carbohydrate:46.5g Fiber:1.7g Cholesterol:75mg Iron:0.5mg Sodium:155mg Calcium:84mg
